Pieces Of Time
by Thoughts on paper
Summary: Ever wondered if that boy or girl you secretly liked, might like you, too? Or how you are afraid to take the next step? Scared to have your heart broken, again? This is for all you hopeless romantics out there. You know who you are. Join me in these little pieces of time.
1. Yet you stay

**-:- 1 -:-**

**Betas**: Writting2StayHalfSane (Erica) and Edwardsfavoritebrunette

**Summary (made by Ele05gs)**: Best friends do everything together. Best friends don't keep secrets from each other. Or do they? Bella would do anything for Edward, but if having him in her life meant hiding the feelings she had for him, she would do it. But for how long can you hide your affection, for how long can you hide your love and disguise it as friendship? I guess we're about to find out...

**-:- Yet You Stay -:-**

Bella opened her eyes and stared at the ceiling. She rested her hands on her stomach. _Oh yeah, the butterflies were still there_. A smile appeared on her lips.

_Edward_. His name flashed through her mind. He was the first thing she thought about every morning, and the last before she went to sleep.

She didn't know any other guy that could be as sweet, understanding and loyal. Of course, Edward acted tough around his friends when they went out, but with her…when he was alone with her, it felt like they were the only two people in the world.

Bella sighed, and put her purple pillow over her head, feeling frustrated. How was she going to handle this? She couldn't possibly hide it from him. He would know; he always knew when something was up. How was she going to tell him? And most importantly, _why_had she been so stupid to fall for her best friend? But oh, who was she kidding; Bella knew exactly why.

Edward had been there for her whenever she needed him, day or night. Nobody else understood her the way he did. When Bella's ex-boyfriend, who they now called "soulless monster", had cheated on her with one of her classmates, Edward had been there to pick her up again. He had listened to her rants. He had let her cry on his shoulder, and he had held her before she fell asleep in his arms.

Rosalie, Bella's other best friend, had been there for her as well, but it was different. In a way, Bella felt like she could talk better about her problems with Edward. Not that it was that strange, because Edward had been through the same thing with his "heartless bitch". It seemed only logical that they sought comfort with each other.

Bella had never expected that those late night talks would create different feelings inside of her, though. She'd known Edward for seventeen years, for her whole life, and she was deadly afraid that he wouldn't feel the same as she did. What if she lost him because of her silly crush?

Bella was shaken from her daydream by the buzzing of her phone.

"_And?"_

One word. It came from Rosalie. She was the only one who knew of Bella's feelings. Bella hadn't told Rose, but as a best friend, she just knew and she saw right through Bella's attempt to deny any attraction between her and her best friend.

"_And…what?"_

Bella hit send and closed her eyes. She acted as if nothing was wrong. Not even a minute later her phone beeped again.

"_You're such a chicken! :D"_

Bella put her phone away but couldn't shake the feeling that Rosalie was right. Bella didn't have the guts to confess. However, she had told Rose that she was planning on telling Edward the next time she saw him. According to Rosalie, Bella had no choice but to tell him. Edward would soon notice that something was bothering her; that she liked someone, and that would only complicate things further. Besides, he deserved to know the truth, because friends didn't keep secrets from each other, right?

Deep down, Bella knew that she had to tell him, but that didn't make it any easier. How could she tell Edward that she wanted to be more, a lot more, than just best friends? What if he didn't feel the same? How would their friendship go on after that big bomb had dropped? Would she lose him forever?

Bella had been distracted all day, getting multiple sighs from her teachers when she didn't know the answer to their questions―again. Her head just wasn't with school today; it hadn't been for the past week.

During last period, Rose finally made her move.

"So, what's the plan?" she asked with a naughty grin on her face. Bella rolled her eyes at her friend.

"What? You're not going to tell the guy of your dreams that you like him?" Rose went on, though trying to keep her voice down in class. "You're just going to wait until some other cow steals his heart and you'll continue to play his best buddy? Doesn't that bother you? How are you going to feel when that happens, huh?"

Bella shrugged, feeling tears well up just thinking about it. Rose could be pretty blunt when she wanted to. What if Edward found another girl? Could she live with that? Could Bella share him?

Their bond was very strong, and they'd been through a lot together, but what if the new girl would ask for all his time or demand that he didn't see Bella anymore? Could she handle that?

"I'm sorry if that sounded harsh, Bella." Rose interrupted her thoughts. Her words were a bit softer now, and the look of worry on her face made it clear that she felt as bad as Bella did. "But the only thing I can think of for you to do is to tell him. Besides, he's crazy if he doesn't want to go out with you. You're like his twin in girl form. It's creepy!" She nodded firmly as if that settled everything.

A weak smile appeared on Bella's lips. As she looked at Rosalie, she wished she had as much confidence as Rosalie did. Life would be a lot easier. She gave her best friend a sideways hug.

"You know what?" Bella said as confidently as she could manage. "I need to stop by Edward's house anyway. He invited me to come over after school to play some games but I wasn't sure if I―"

"What?!" Rose shrieked, drawing attention to them. Luckily, the teacher chose to ignore it. "Edward invites you over, and you are not sure if you want to go?" She threw her hands in the air before slamming them down on her desk. Again, this was ignored by the teacher.

"I'm telling you, you're going to lose your best friend if you continue like this. If you are not out of my sight and in your car within five seconds after the bell rings, I'm going to kick your ass!"

So Bella did what had to be done. Half an hour later, she stood before Edward's house, hesitating and doubting every thought that came to mind.

"Don't think, just do it," she murmured to herself. Before she could press the bell, the door flew open, and Edward came into view, a bright smile plastered on his face.

"You made it!" he said enthusiastically. "I was starting to worry when you didn't text me back. I can't even image not gaming with you…who else do I have to beat time and time again, uh?"

He playfully pulled her inside. The teasing, the smiling…it was so easy when she was with him.

"Come on, you can start up and I'll get us some drinks." Edward winked at her. Those gorgeous green eyes were so easy to get lost in.

_Get it together, Bella,_she snapped at herself.

Five minutes later, they were gaming, and like always, the necessary shouting was present.

"You do know that turning your controller won't help, right?" Edward teased and Bella growled an angry response. They were both so competitive that it made it all the more fun.

After a while, Bella started to get distracted with Edward so close to her. She could smell his aftershave. The butterflies in her stomach were going wild, crashing inside of her, and it was getting pretty hard to stay focused on the game as he sat closer and closer until their legs were almost touching. Edward started to notice that something was off as well.

He paused the game and sighed, throwing the remote on the table. "Okay, what's up? You've been acting weird all week." He turned toward her while looking deeply into her eyes as if he were trying to read the answer there. Bella felt herself blush.

"Hey," he said, worried. "It's me. Edward, your best bud? The one you can tell everything?"

Bella smiled meekly as she was trying to find the right words in vain. Every syllable got stuck in her throat.

"I know what it is," Edward tried again. "You're in love! You always act weird when you like someone." That definitely caught Bella off guard.

"Must be a girl thing," Edward mumbled to himself.

_Okay, just go for the quick pain, Bella._ She told herself. Like a Band-Aid that's ripped off. Get it over with.

She really wasn't prepared for this. She struggled to find the right sentences in her head, but Edward's chatter filled the room again before she could speak.

"Do I know him?" he asked lightly. Bella nodded. _Of course he knew him!_

"Oh damn, that hurts. My heart is broken; I have to share you again with some douche?" Edward smiled while playfully caressing his chest, right over his heart. He was trying to cheer her up.

"You'll make some time for me, right? Because honestly, I don't want to lose you to some other guy." He sighed. "Do you realize how much it pains me to know that you'll be going out with someone that's not me?" He shrugged, his eyes downcast. "Though, I guess I'll have to learn to live with the fact that I'll never be your boyfriend, but please don't stop being my friend, okay?"

Bella just sat there, stunned, rapidly blinking and totally not getting it. Did he just…Did he just really…No way!

She hadn't expected that monologue in a hundred years. Edward felt something for her, but thought that she didn't feel the same way? Was this really happening?

"You're saying that I don't want you as my boyfriend?" she said loudly, still a bit stunned but happier than she'd been in a long time.

"Yeah…right?" He looked confused.

"You really have no clue, do you?" Bella smiled lovingly at him as she took his hands.

"You mean?" he stuttered, at loss for words.

"Come here, you! You're even crazier than I thought!"

Bella pulled him toward her, and when their lips met for a long, soft kiss, they made the doubts and hesitation they had both felt, disappear for good.


	2. Mystery boy

**-:- 2 -:-**

**Betas:**Wynnebat and Beautiful nightmarex

**Summary (made by Ele05gs):**You know what they say, if you want something, go and get it. If you don't ask, the answer will always be no. Alice was gathering the courage to talk to the boy she liked, but when she finally decided to act on it, he disappeared. So where is he now? And how far will she go to find him?

* * *

**-:- Mystery Boy -:-**

Alice pulled her hoodie tighter around her small frame. The rain was pouring down in sheets, the icy wind was biting at her face, and she had missed the bus. Again. _On purpose_.

"This had better be worth it," she mumbled to herself. Her warm breath formed in the cold temperature. An old lady with a thick, pink coat looked strangely at her, probably wondering why the odd little girl next to her was talking to herself.

Alice quickly turned around. The last thing she needed right now was for someone to think she was crazy, which technically, she was, because she was doing this for a boy. A boy she didn't even know. A boy she'd never even spoken to.

While the rain kept coming down, soaking her new sneakers, Alice's thoughts drifted off.

She didn't even know his name, but he looked like one of those surfer types that came right out of her sports magazines. In her head, she'd named him Jason, just because he looked like a Jason. He had these gorgeous honey blond curls, dark eyes, and when he smiled he had the cutest dimples and…Alice felt her stomach twirling; she felt giddy knowing she might get a chance to see him again.

A few weeks ago, Alice had offered to give her two best friends, Bella and Rosalie, a ride to school. But when she tried to start the car, the engine just kept turning over. She hadn't had the time for her friends to come pick her up, so after sending a quick apology to them, she ran to the bus stop.

_Best decision ever!_

Alice, much to her friends' dismay, had continued taking the bus for an entire month after that day, just so she could catch a glimpse of the boy. Every time she laid eyes on him, she felt her throat tighten, like her breathing was being cut off. Normally, she was the loudest of her group of friends, but when she got near him, she completely panicked and went silent.

Her friends had laughed at that. "Just talk to him already," Bella told her, encouragingly. "You never know what'll happen."

But Alice hadn't had the guts yet to talk to her mystery boy, and now it was too late. Three days…three days since the last time she had seen him. Suddenly as he had come into her life, he vanished.

After some failed attempts at trying to find him, some of which had included searching all the hallways in school, waiting at the bus stop for several hours after school had ended and getting purposely put into detention hoping that he would be there, too, Alice had now resorted to missing the first bus to school on purpose, in the hopes that he caught the later bus. Maybe Jason didn't like getting up early anymore, maybe he was sick, maybe he didn't like how crowded the first bus would get. _Maybe_…

-:-

"Did you see him?" Rosalie whispered from the back row in class. Alice was over half an hour late. She'd entered the classroom completely soaked and dripping wet. Before she could even answer, Mr. Varner towered above her with an angry scowl on his face.

"Too lazy to get out of bed this morning?" he snapped at her. "Glad you could join us after all." He didn't look glad at all; he looked like he'd swallowed four lemons and a bottle of salt.

"I'm sorry. It won't happen again," Alice said sincerely. She'd never been late to his class before, so she didn't understand why he was giving her such a hard time.

"Yeah, that's what they all say, lazy teenagers," he mumbled. "Detention after school."

"But, it's Friday, you can't―"

"Don't tell me what I can or cannot do, young lady." He looked furious now. "Take your place. I don't want to hear another word."

Astonished, Alice nodded, and sat down at her desk. As if her day couldn't get any worse. Detention for being late. She found it a bit much, but you could pretty much expect anything from Mr. Varner. Alice couldn't even remember the last time she'd heard him make a joke, or even smile. She didn't even know if Mr. Varner _knew_how to smile.

Alice sighed loudly and tried to wrench out her wet hoodie.

"I'm sorry," Bella said softly from beside her. "Plan D didn't work, but we've always got plan E, right?"

"Which is?"

"Just wait…he has to come around someday. He can't just disappear of the face of the earth. He'll be back sooner or later." Bella carefully placed her notebook in the middle so that Alice could copy the exercises that she'd missed while waiting for the boy. With another loud sigh, she took her pen and started copying down the notes, dreading the day ahead of her.

-:-

"You can go home now. Enjoy your weekend." Mrs. Goff, Alice's Spanish teacher, smiled kindly at her and at all the other students who were lucky enough to get detention on a Friday afternoon. Normally, detention wasn't over for another half hour, but nobody complained and many of them rushed to get out of the room. Mrs. Goff probably wanted to go home herself.

Alice gathered her things and walked toward the entrance of the school. If she was quick, she could have a drink with her friends at their usual café. But as soon as Alice stepped outside of the school building, the rain started to pour out of the sky so heavily she couldn't even see the cars parked in the parking lot.

"You've got to be kidding me!" she growled angrily, stomping her foot and biting back a stream of curse words. Her hoodie wasn't much protection for this weather, and it hadn't even dried yet from the rain this morning. Nevertheless, Alice tried to stuff her spiky hair under the hood and kept her backpack close to her chest. _Tried_, being the key word, because with a loud bang and a splash that soaked her shoes, _again_, her backpack fell into a nearby puddle.

"Oh, come on!" Alice lost her patience, and her calm. Her new shoes were ruined, her books were wet and she looked like a freaking drowned chicken.

"Great, just great," she grumbled, yanking her backpack up. All of this had started this morning when she had purposely missed the bus. She never should have done that. It hadn't been worth it anyway.

Alice didn't plan on meeting her friends now, looking like this. She was upset, and she had no interest in listening to their great weekend plans, while she was going to sulk in her bedroom all by herself and listen to some crappy love songs.

"_Going home, soaked and tired."_ Alice sent the text to both Bella and Rosalie. One of them was bound to read it soon.

When she finally made it home, her mother wasn't there yet. _Probably still at work_, Alice thought. So she went upstairs and got everything ready to take a long hot bath. That ought to relax her. Suddenly, the doorbell rang, a screeching sound blasting through the silence.

Bella and Rosalie were grinning madly when Alice opened the door.

"You didn't think you'd be sulking alone on a Friday evening, right?" Bella said happily as she walked past Alice toward the kitchen before she could even mutter a single word.

"We've got popcorn, some very corny movies, and Ben & Jerry's." Rosalie held up a bag, and Alice smiled gratefully.

"What happened to your backpack?" Rose asked suddenly.

"Oh, I dropped it in a puddle," Alice said meekly, looking at the drenched thing in the hallway.

"You should take your books out and let them dry," Rose commented, while walking toward the soaked bag.

"Sure Mom, go ahead," Alice replied with a smile on her face. Rose stuck her tongue out.

"Kids these days." She sighed dramatically, playing along. Rosalie went to the kitchen, took the books out, one by one, and put them on the stove.

"What's this?" she asked curiously, holding up a white envelope.

"Where did you get that?" Alice asked, surprised. Rose pointed at the front pocket.

"I never put something in there, the zipper doesn't work properly," Alice replied while quickly snatching the envelope out of her friend's hands.

The three girls gathered around the kitchen table, one even more curious than the other.

"Okay, well, that doesn't matter now!" Bella said. "Open it!"

Alice opened the wet envelope, careful not to break it, and definitely not quick enough for Rose's liking, but eventually it worked and she got the letter out. The words were a bit run out due to the rain, but they were readable.

"_To the girl with the gorgeous blue eyes and the pretty smile," _Alice read out loud, earning squeals from her friends. _"From next week on, I'll be going by bike instead of the bus. I won't be able to see you anymore and for that I'm sorry, because you were pretty much the highlight of every morning, of every day actually. I woke up, smiling, because I knew I'd see you again. I can't even begin to explain what you did to me. Every time I caught you staring at me, then quickly looking away, pretending you weren't doing the exact same thing as I was…I felt something there, and I hope you did too. Since I won't be seeing you again, I'm taking my chance now. If you want to meet me, here's my number. I'll be waiting._

_PS: My name is Jasper."_


	3. Heartbreak world

**-:- 3-:-**

**Betas:**beautiful nightmarex and Alice's White Rabbit

**Summary (made by Ele05gs)**: Exams are over and Edward wants to celebrate. What better way to do so than finding the girl he liked? Bella may prove to be a little hard to persuade, but she is worth it. The only problem: she might not be ready for a relationship just yet, leaving Edward to wander. Until he finds Tanya. Will sparks fly or will his feelings for Bella overpower everything else?

**-:- Heartbreak World -:-**

With the exams finally over, and with such high marks, Edward decided it was time to focus on the more important things in life―his love life, to be more specific.

For starters, he cleaned out his apartment—girls didn't like to be welcomed into a pig sty. Edward lived in a cozy studio based in a two-story house. The owner had created four studios in the house, and made an apartment for himself as well. Edward had always been grateful to his parents. Without them, he would had to live in a dorm with other students and practically no privacy at all. He preferred to have his own place. He liked it that way.

After cleaning―which included throwing away an embarrassing number of pizza boxes and beer bottles―he sprayed some air freshener throughout the entire room. With a goofy grin, he looked around. The room looked like something out of those modern pictures from the silly magazines his little sister used to read. Dark blue walls, a guitar in one corner, a rack with colorful LP's to brighten the room, his bed was neatly made up, and he had even put some plants on the windowsill.

After admiring his room for a few minutes, he finally picked up his phone and did what he had wanted to do for a very long time. He called Bella.

Bella was a girl from his year, who had stopped her studies right before the exams started and since then, Edward hadn't seen her. But now it was time to change that. The phone rang for a few seconds, before a click sounded, and Bella's bright voice followed. Instantly, Edward smiled.

They agreed to meet in a small bar around the corner from Edward's place that same night. Bella told him how glad she was that he called her; she had missed him. They had flirted a bit in class, but neither had picked up the courage to ask the other out.

When Bella walked through the door of the bar, Edward felt his breathing stop. He'd been sitting there for a few minutes, but he couldn't keep his eyes off her once she'd entered.

Bella looked like a woman on a mission. Her beautiful brown hair was pulled up in a wild bun, strands falling all around her head. Her lips were painted a dark, sensual red, and she wore a long coat. Her elegant black heels showed off her long legs that were currently hidden by the coat, but Edward still remembered how they looked in those tight jeans she used to wear. She'd caught his eye many times in class.

As if they had only spoken yesterday, they picked up where they'd left off. Their easy conversation was interrupted many times by loud laughter, jokes and playful touching. The hours flew by, and when the streets were finally embraced by the dark, the bar manager made it clear it was time for them to go. He was subtle though, putting the chairs on the nearby tables, closing the curtains in the back and changing the calm jazzy music to some awful eighties rock band that was bound to scare everyone off. The duo looked at each other. It seemed like neither wanted the night to be over.

"One more at my place?" Edward asked innocently, pointing at the empty drinks in front of them.

"I'd love to," Bella said. "But I think it's best if I go home." Edward sat back, a bit stunned. Had he misread her behavior all night? He'd thought she liked him.

Suddenly, the easy smile was gone from Bella's face, the warmth in her eyes had disappeared, and she'd put more distance between them as if they were suddenly strangers. Edward blamed himself for pushing her too fast. He shouldn't have suggested going back to his place. _Idiot_, he scolded himself.

"Is there someone waiting for you?" He tried to ease the tension that had crept between them, but the look in Bella's brown eyes made it clear she wasn't going to answer. She bit her lip, but stood up anyway, and quickly kissed him on the cheek.

"It's not you," she whispered in his ear before walking away and leaving behind a shocked Edward. Her silhouette disappeared in the darkness, the sound of her heels getting fainter with each second.

Edward felt lonely and abandoned, and with a heavy heart, he walked back toward his studio after he'd paid the bill. "I passed my exams with excellent marks," he thought, "and I didn't even have to try _that_hard. Still, I'm not happy." He looked around and one of the side streets, glowing with light, caught his attention. He hesitated for a moment, but then continued. He walked straight toward one of the bars that were still open at this hour.

"Two beers!" he yelled loudly as he stepped inside, but then stopped.

It wasn't a bar, it was an internet café. Several eyes looked at him judgingly, annoyed that he'd broken the eerie silence. Feeling ashamed, he made himself comfortable in front of a computer. He could chat for a while, right? Nothing bad would come from that.

-:-

Edward couldn't believe his luck when, after a few tries, he found someone who he instantly felt a connection with―a girl, who listened to him, who understood him. Edward's fingers flew over the keyboard while a lazy smile played on his lips as he read the girl's comments.

All of a sudden, his eyes widened.

_82638X: I'm bored. Tell me where you live, I'll come and we can have some fun. ;)_

Edward hesitated, but gave the address anyway. Half an hour later, a girl―or woman, to be more precise―stepped through the door. She appeared a bit older than him, but he couldn't immediately guess her age.

They left the internet café and sat down at a nearby bar. She drank white wine, he drank beers and for the first time that night, Edward felt like he didn't have to do his best. Talking to her was easy, like it took no effort at all.

When the owner asked them to leave, images of Bella came to mind, but Edward pushed them away. She'd left him; she hadn't wanted to come back with him. She made her choice.

"We can go somewhere else," he said casually. "If you want, I've got some great wine at my place."

The woman, Tanya, seemed to hesitate. "Am I not too old for you, little boy?" she asked with a naughty tone to her voice, her finger grazing Edward's arm. He felt a blush on his cheeks and looked at Tanya. He wouldn't dare ask her age. As if Tanya could read his mind, she answered playfully: "I'm thirty-two. Over ten years older than you, am I right?"

Edward nodded and looked away for a moment. Then, he made up his mind.

"So, how about that wine?"

She grabbed his hand and together they walked toward his studio. When Edward opened the door, he had already forgotten that he'd cleaned the whole place for Bella's return, and even Tanya seemed a bit shocked.

"Wow," she gasped. "In my time, every room was a dump." She laughed a tingly laugh. Edward smiled too, a bit sheepish though.

Tanya sat down on his bed and looked at him, questioning. "Didn't you say something about wine?" Edward quickly went to get it and poured it in two lemonade glasses. He handed one of them to Tanya.

"I'm sorry, but wine glasses don't live long here." He shrugged apologetically.

Tanya smiled and soon they were talking. The more wine they drank, the closer they got. Arms brushing, knees touching, hips moving. It felt like they were dancing around each other, teasing, but not wanting to go for it.

Until Edward couldn't take it any longer, he snuck an arm around Tanya's waist and pulled her close. Their lips met and a sigh of pleasure was heard through the room. Tanya pushed him down on the bed, straddled him, and kissed him passionately. She was about to unbutton his shirt, when suddenly they were both startled by the sound of the doorbell.

"Are you expecting someone?" Tanya asked, breathless, her light blond curls hanging in Edward's face.

He shook his head. "Not that I know of, but we get visitors at the craziest hours." He excused himself and went downstairs. When he opened the door, he gasped softly. Bella was standing nervously before him.

"I'm sorry about earlier," she said timidly, giving him no time to say something. "I changed my mind about that drink, if you're still up for it?"

Edward swallowed loudly, his hand fidgeting with his hair. "Oh, well, that's sort of difficult right now, there―"

Bella didn't even wait for him to finish.

"I knew this was wrong." She raised her voice, a deep frown on her forehead. "I thought there was something going on between us, but I guess you're just like everybody else!" She stomped away, her heels clacking loudly on the pavement.

Edward sighed, feeling miserable, thinking he'd never understand how the mind of a woman worked, but went back upstairs anyway.

"Who was it?" Tanya asked curiously.

"Nobody," Edward said as he took off his shirt, unbuckled his belt and went back to where they left off.


	4. Stolen moments

**-:- 4 -:-**

**Betas:**Team Edward Rules All and Lost in a musical daydream

**Summary (made by Ele05gs): **New town, new school, new friends. If there's something Bella hates, it's being the new girl. The unwanted attention, the stares, the whispers as she walks by, it's all very annoying. But maybe being new has its advantages? Maybe she just needs to find a reason to help her ignore it all.

**-:- Stolen Moments -:-**

"Juniors!" the principal yelled. "Calm down!"

Bella flinched. Where the hell had she ended up?

Just because her mom wanted to move because she believed her art would be more appreciated here didn't mean Bella had to change her whole life, too. Unluckily for Bella, her mother wouldn't listen. So with or without Bella's cooperation, they'd moved out of sunny Phoenix to a wet and horrible town known as Forks. Bella had to restart all over in her junior year, regardless of how far she'd progressed in Phoenix. A new school, a new town, new teachers, new friends…everything was different here.

Forks High had dull hallways and filthy windows that smelt gross. Bella's school in Phoenix on the other hand, had been orderly and ideal. Here, the classrooms were colder and less friendly than Bella was used to. The other students seemed strange as well, as if they had their own little group that nobody else could be a part of. Nobody smiled at her, or even looked her way. Everyone was looking, or pretending to look, directly at the principal.

Bella didn't understand why everyone was already so punctual. These were just the formalities, orientation day; classes hadn't even begun yet.

"It's just school, not the military," she thought miserably. While sighing rather loudly, she earned a few annoyed stares from the pretty blond girls next to her. _Those girls would never be her friends._

She missed Angela and Lauren, her best friends. Leaving them had probably been the hardest thing Bella had ever done. Even though they'd all promised to write and keep in touch, Bella knew how things like this worked. At the beginning it would be daily calls, then once a week, a letter or email every month and after that, with a bit of luck, a Christmas or birthday card. Bella kept her head high, mentally telling herself that she wouldn't lose Angela and Lauren over her mother's decision. Their friendship was stronger than most; they'd survive it.

The principal explained the rules of the school―which happened to be a very, _very_ long list―and demanded that everyone took the time to learn and respect them. Bella grinned at the craziness of it all and pulled at her high ponytail in frustration.

"This isn't something to laugh about, you know." She heard someone say beside her. "You should be ashamed of yourself."

Startled, Bella looked up and noticed a guy standing next to her, smiling a gorgeous crooked smile that made her insides tingle.

"Err, sorry?" she tried.

"It's pretty obvious you're new," he went on. "Guess I just wanted you to know it's not all bad here." Bella relaxed a bit―at least there was one friendly face in this hellhole.

The guy pulled Bella with him by her elbow and in no time, they were standing at the back of the crowd.

"Don't take it too personally," he said lightly, his green eyes shining with humor. "Our principal likes to have control during the first few days of school. He loses it after the first week, though." He winked. "A pretty okay guy if you ask me."

Bella exhaled in relief. She'd been scanning the crowd for the past half hour, but nobody seemed to want to talk to her. They had their secluded groups, no newcomer allowed, and if she couldn't find someone to talk to now, then she most definitely wouldn't be able to find anyone who might be fun to hang out with for the remainder of her school life. This year was going to suck.

Bella looked again at the guy next to her. He was lean but you could tell he was well built by the way the muscles in his arms flexed under his blue sweater. Even more attractive to Bella than his muscles were his gorgeous green eyes and untidy bronze hair. He seemed nice, and if he was nice, maybe his friends were too. For the first time today, Bella smiled, something that didn't go unnoticed.

"What are you smiling about?" the guy with the pretty green eyes asked, coming closer to her so that he wouldn't disturb the row before them.

"No apparent reason," Bella replied, shrugging. "I'm just happy. A few minutes ago, I was ready to bolt out of here and ask my mom to have me homeschooled. But it just got a bit better." The guy seemed to like the compliment and nudged her shoulder in agreement.

"I guess we'll see a lot of each other this year," he said casually.

"I hope so," Bella whispered, not loud enough for him to hear.

After the endless list of rules and a long speech from the principal, he finally gave the cue to leave. Three more days and the summer holidays would be over. Bella's stomach churned just thinking about it.

She watched the guy out of the corner of her eye, and concluded that he wasn't exactly her type. He looked a bit too old to be a junior. Maybe he was a senior? But the way he smiled, the way he laughed and talked, made him totally swoon worthy. Angela and Lauren would kill to see a picture of this new eye candy.

He noticed that Bella was checking him out and smiled slightly to himself. "Well, I hope you'll like it here. It's really not that bad as it looks right now."

"Will you be here in three days?" Bella asked, trying to make sure that he wasn't just a security guy or something.

"Oh, I will be here, more than you'll like." He laughed, messing up his hair with his hand. Bella found it a strange answer, but let it go.

"Funny." She grinned, and the guy grinned back. This was going well too easily. She felt too comfortable around him, and it was too soon. Would she kiss him goodbye? Or give him a hug? She decided to do neither.

"Well, I guess I'll see you around?" she sort of asked. "It's Bella, by the way." She held out her hand.

"Uh…Edward," he said, seeming a bit uncomfortable, as he shook her hand. "Nice to meet you, Bella."

She nodded and left the room, feeling Edward's gaze burning holes in her back.

The last three days of summer went by incredibly fast. While most teens used the time they had left to hang out with their friends, Bella spent most of her time unpacking paintings for her mom, only because she was too busy creating her next masterpiece.

Without even realizing it, Bella set her alarm clock for the first day of school. A chill coursed through her body. She really didn't do well with new people; she never knew what to say. But then her thoughts shifted, and they landed on Edward. _He'd make tomorrow better_, she thought. _He'll help me find some new friends_. Maybe they would have some classes together, which would be nice. Very nice, indeed.

His crooked smile had been stuck in her mind constantly for the past three days, and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't get him out of her head. Not only that, but his soft voice filled her ears before she went to sleep each night as well. Bella couldn't ignore the tingly feeling in her stomach that arose whenever she thought about him. She knew she liked him, he'd made a great first impression, and maybe if she spent more time with him, got to know him better…then maybe this year wouldn't be that bad after all. She took her purple monkey from under her bed, and crushed it against her chest.

"Oh, Edward," she murmured, and fell asleep in no time.

The next morning came way too soon. After her morning routine and a good luck from her mom, she made her way to school.

Bella walked nervously toward her classroom, trying to ignore all the stares from her peers. She felt like an animal in a cage, trapped with no way out.

Biology was her first period. Her eyes scanned the crowd, but Edward was nowhere in sight. _Maybe he was sick_, she thought. She scolded herself for not asking for his phone number; maybe she could have called him, asked what was wrong or which class he had now. Though, maybe that would be too pushy. She'd only met the guy a few days ago for crying out loud.

The bell sounded again, when she'd just found the classroom.

"Great," she thought. "I'm the new girl, nobody wants to talk to me, and the only person that seemed remotely nice is nowhere to be found."

She took a seat at the back row, sighing softly while trying not to draw too much attention to herself, as she did so, even though her classmates were gawking at her already.

Bella looked frantically around. _Edward, where are you?_

The chatter of her new classmates went down as they heard footsteps coming nearer. Edward casually walked in, and Bella couldn't help the smile that instantly surfaced on her face. She was trying to get his attention, trying to say that it was okay if he wanted to sit with her.

Edward ignored her, and Bella felt a sting of rejection. She sagged back in her chair.

"Hi class," Edward said suddenly. "I guess most of you remember me from last year. I'm Edward Cullen, and I'm your biology teacher for this year." He smiled at his students. "Please, take your seats."

Bella's world all but crashed down.

"Oh, shit," she mumbled.


	5. For the love of a brother

**-:- 5 -:-**

**Betas**: ChocolateMango and Edwardsfavoritebrunette

**Summary: **Family comes first. We all know that, and so does Edward, yet he is falling for the girl that broke his brother's heart. What do you choose: love or family?

**-:- For the love of a brother -:-**

"Edward, it's almost time to drive your brother to school!" Esme yelled from the first floor. His mother's voice rang in his ears painfully. Edward pretended to still be asleep, but he was wide awake, and had been, for quite a long time now.

"Come on, Edward! Get up! I'm not asking again!" Esme shouted, while he heard her footsteps on the stairs. She was going to drag him out of bed, like she had done pretty much every morning since freshman year, but that plan wouldn't work that day. Edward had been sitting, ready to go, on his bed for the past three hours.

"You're…up?" His mom asked, confused as she opened the door. "That's the first time in three years that I haven't had to pull you out of bed." She looked at her oldest son and scrunched her nose. "Okay, what is it? Are you going to ditch school? Go see a girlfriend? Are you doing drugs?"

Edward laughed. "Easy, mother. I'm not going to ditch school, and there is no girl in my life."

That last one was a lie that came out easily.

"Good, that's good," Esme mumbled. "Emmett wouldn't handle it well if you came home with a girl. Rose seriously messed with his head. I still can't believe that girl, she was wonderful and yet―"

Edward felt uncomfortable as he tried not to listen to his mother's rant. There was a girl he liked. A girl who was out of his reach, for sure. It was the girl who happened to be his younger brother's ex-girlfriend, Rosalie. As if love wasn't hard enough already.

Edward had gotten up early that day to get ready for her. He wanted to look his best today because he had two hours to spend with Rosalie in Biology.

With an uneasy feeling, Edward got into his car with a silent Emmett. On the way to school, Edward struggled with a million questions. How could he fall for his brother's ex? And more importantly, what should he do now? Should he tell her? Or should he just wait for this stupid crush to be over? The guy code still existed, and Edward was pretty sure that dating your brother's ex stood in the top ten of the don'ts list.

Edward looked at Emmett. His otherwise joyful brother was looking sadly out the window―dark bags under his eyes marked the lack of sleep. Edward wanted to say something to make him feel better, but found that he couldn't. Rosalie stood between them now, even though Emmett wasn't aware of Edward's feelings.

Before Edward could say anything, the school came into sight, and he parked the car.

"See ya later?" he said quickly to his brother. "And take care, man."

Emmett grunted a response and Edward walked away quickly. He tried not to notice the stares and whispers that were thrown at his brother, but in this little school it was almost impossible not to know everything. Every student, and probably every teacher, knew that Rosalie had dumped his brother after three years of dating. They had been joined at the hip and then…they weren't anymore.

First period dragged on and on. It seemed like the clock was going backwards, and Edward couldn't concentrate one bit in class. He just had to get through the first two hours and after that, he would get two hours with Rose.

For the first time, he actually wanted to go to Biology.

"One more hour and I see Rosie," Edward said aloud without realizing it.

"What's in one hour?" Jasper asked next to him.

"Uh, we get our Biology tests back. I'm pretty sure I aced it." Edward smiled, trying to cover up his previous mistake. Luckily, Jasper seemed oblivious to his uneasiness.

"Yeah, I think I did well, too," Jasper replied, before looking back at the blackboard to write down their homework for the next lesson.

Finally, English ended, and in between classes the only thing that could be heard in the hallway was gossip about Emmett and Rosalie, the power couple that had broken up. There were a lot of speculations about what had happened, but there were only a handful of people who knew the actual truth.

Edward tried not to get involved and most certainly didn't answer any questions. After five minutes of going back and forth in his mind, he finally made his decision: he was going to tell Rose that he liked her. With newfound courage, he walked toward the biology room.

_I have to tell her_, he thought to himself. When he entered the room, he saw Rose sitting in the back row, looking out of the window, absentmindedly playing with her golden blond hair. She was as beautiful as her name suggested, even though she looked incredibly sad. Edward felt his heart clench.

_A few more seconds, and then I'll tell her_―he mentally prepared himself―_What's the worst that can happen, right._

He counted in his head, and made his way toward her.

"Rosie, you're far more beautiful when you smile," he said casually, hanging onto the desk in front of her. "You okay?"

"Fine." She sniffed. "I'm just not feeling well."

"Can I get you anything? Nurse Julie has something for everything."

Rosalie didn't answer, but fixed her icy blue eyes on Edward. "No, thank you. I don't think Julie has anything that can fix this."

After her comment, Edward scrambled to think of something that would cheer her up. He didn't like seeing her so sad. Maybe he should just spill it and tell her how he felt…maybe that would cheer her up? Or it would freak her out…either option was better than seeing her so sad.

"Rose, there's something I have to tell you," he started, but to his surprise, Rosalie started crying, almost bawling, while drawing all the attention in the room to her as big tears rolled down her cheeks and onto her neck.

Edward told everyone to stop staring, and luckily they listened.

"I have to tell _you _something," Rosalie struggled to say through her tears. "I made a big mistake, Edward. I should have never broken up with Emmett. I still love him, so much." She sighed loudly, trying to recompose herself and not to ruin her makeup. "I miss him, every day more and more, but I don't dare to tell him that. He was so angry when I told him it wasn't working for me anymore. I just, I don't know what do." She pulled angrily at her hair, but then looked up again.

"Do you want to talk to Emmett for me? Please, Edward." She took his hands in hers, gently squeezing them. Edward was stupefied. Their break up happened over a month ago. He hadn't known she was still so into Emmett.

Maybe Edward had acted like an idiot, thinking he could tell her how he felt about her. _So stupid_.

"Of course I'll talk to him, Rosie," he said, lighter than he actually felt. "Anything for you."

"Thank you, Edward," she said gratefully as she leaned forward and gave him a kiss on his cheek. "What did you want to tell me?"

"Oh," Edward said, dumbfounded. "Nothing, it wasn't important."

He took his things and sat down in the far end of the room, putting as much distance between Rosalie and him as possible.

In a way, Edward had expected he would feel bad, but he felt…relieved. Emmett and Rosalie would be happy again, and in the end, that was what's most important, right?


	6. Heart of stone

**-:- 6 -:-**

**Betas**: ChocolateMango and Beautifulnightmarex

**Summary** (made by Ele05gs): Edward and Angela are the two people Bella counts on the most. But what do you do when those closest to you start acting suspiciously? Is it okay to doubt them? To think they are hiding something from you? Or should you just trust them with everything you have? Bella doesn't know what to do, but we are about to find out...

**-:- Heart of stone -:-**

Bella and Edward had been together for almost a year now, and Bella was still totally head over heels for him. She'd never thought she would find someone as amazing as Edward. But every time she looked at him, or kissed or touched him, it felt like the first time all over again. That tingly feeling in her stomach never seemed to go away.

However, about a week ago, Edward had started to act weird around her. He seemed distant, and when she looked at him, he became nervous and avoided her eyes. She didn't really know what to think of it, so she went to Angela, her best friend, for some advice.

"He's acting weird, Angie," she said quietly, fidgeting with the sleeves of her hoodie. "It's never been like this before. He seems distracted, like his mind is somewhere else. He doesn't listen to me anymore, and when I ask what's wrong, he just barks at me that everything is fine, even though I know something is clearly bothering him!"

Bella was pacing back and forth across the room, trying to figure things out.

"It doesn't sound that weird, Bella," Angela said. "Maybe he is having problems at home. You know it's not easy for him. Or maybe the pressure at school is becoming too much or―"

"That doesn't explain why he was two hours late yesterday!" Bella snapped. "He said he'd come to me after practice, but he didn't. When I asked him about it, he came up with some lame excuse that he went for a drink with the guys in the canteen."

"And that's strange because?" Angela arched her brow.

"Because the canteen isn't open after practice." Bella threw her hands in the air. "He's lying to me." She pulled angrily at her ponytail. Was she going to lose Edward? After everything they'd been through?

To Bella's surprise, Angela acted indifferently. "Boys," she said lightly. "They are always acting odd. I wouldn't think too much of it if I were you."

And before Bella could continue, Angela made it clear she had to leave to go to the hairdresser.

"Okay, I guess I'll see you later then." And with that, she left. Bella had felt torn as soon as the lie left Angela's mouth. She'd been to the hairdresser at the beginning of the week.

Both her boyfriend and best friend were lying to her. _What's going on?_

During the ride home, Bella felt nauseous. She had no one to go to.

First, her boyfriend started to act weird with the hiding and lying, and then Angela was writing it off like it wasn't big deal, like it didn't even interest her. Bella had to fight hard to keep the tears away.

-:-

A few days later, Edward drove Bella home after school. He acted like nothing was wrong between the two of them, as if he hadn't lied to her at all. Bella chose to ignore it. Maybe she had imagined it; maybe her mind had played tricks on her.

They were lying on Bella's bed, just cuddling and enjoying each other's company, while soft music played in the back ground.

Bella's eye fell on the picture on her nightstand.

"I miss her," she whispered as she looked at the picture. It was one of Bella standing on a beach with her beloved pug, Cookie, cuddled in her arms. Cookie's tongue was hanging out of her mouth so it seemed like she was smiling as well.

"I know you do," Edward said tenderly as he tightened his embrace.

"It was a silly name though," he added jokingly after a while, trying to lighten the mood a bit.

Bella shoved him. "Shut up, you! I was five!"

She smiled at the memory. Bella's parents, Renee and Charlie, had given their daughter the liberty of choosing any name she wanted. She hadn't had that much imagination, so she decided on either Unicorn or Cookie. Her parents had taken Cookie as the most suitable one of her choices.

"She was amazing, though," Bella mumbled. The name had suited the pug brilliantly, because after every meal she begged for a cookie and she would follow Bella throughout the entire house until she got one.

Cookie had been Bella's best friend. She would wait for her owner in the hall until Bella came home from school. She would bring her leash so that Bella would go for a walk with her. She would whine and push her little snout against Bella's leg until Bella caved and took her on her lap. Cookie had been spoiled, but everyone in the family loved her. She was treated as a second child.

However, about two months ago, Cookie started to act strange. She wouldn't come out of her basket; she didn't whine for a cookie, and she didn't bring her leash. She didn't wait in the hall; she just lay there, barely moving, barely knowing what was going on around her. The bit of food she ate came right out again. Cookie had always been energetic, running around. So with a heavy heart, Bella and Edward had gone to the vet. Everyone thought it was just old age. Pugs could reach the age of fifteen, some even older. Cookie was twelve.

_It was possible…_

However, when the diagnosis finally came, everyone had been devastated.

Brain tumor.

No one had seen it coming. For Bella, it had felt like the ground was kicked out under her feet. She couldn't even remember all the questions that were asked. The only thing she still knew was that she said goodbye to her best friend. She remembered Cookie being taken away from her to go to surgery. She never came out.

Bella had been in a catatonic state for a while. She couldn't accept the fact that her dog was gone. That she wouldn't feel her in her arms anymore; that Cookie wouldn't be there when she got home from school or that her little pug wouldn't wake her up in the morning. After a while, though, it finally sunk in.

Bella had been lucky to have Edward, Angela, and her parents to help her. She just couldn't recall a day where Cookie hadn't been with her. Now, two months later, Bella had made peace with it. She missed Cookie terribly, but she stopped looking for her around the house.

The screeching sound of Edward's phone brought her back to the present. He took his phone out, read the message, and put the phone on the nightstand. Bella asked who it was, like she did most of the time. It wasn't to pry; she was just curious.

"Oh, someone from practice," Edward replied absentmindedly. "He wants to know if I'm coming over tomorrow after school."

"I thought we were going to watch a movie," Bella said reluctantly. Edward always came over on Friday night. They would make dinner together before they went out with their group of friends or watch a movie.

"I guess I can't tomorrow." He pushed her away, not so gently, and got up. He walked out of the room toward the bathroom.

How can he go from being loving and warm to this cold iceberg? Bella wondered. A nagging feeling started to creep in her stomach.

"Don't do it," she whispered to herself, clenching her fists as she looked at his phone. She couldn't take his phone. It was private. But she knew Edward was lying; she could always tell. Reluctantly, she took the phone and went to his inbox.

Her mouth fell open. That last message hadn't been from one of the guys. It had been from Angela: "You coming over tomorrow?"

Tears welled up in her eyes. How could he? How could he lie to her like that, and with her best friend?

A few minutes later, Edward came back to find a seething Bella on her bed.

"How dare you!" she snapped at him as she threw the phone toward him. "I trusted you!"

"What are you talking ab–?" he stammered as he ducked to avoid flying pillows.

"Get out!" Bella shouted. She marched toward him, pushing him out of her room.

"I never want to see you again!" She slammed the door in his face. Edward stayed at her door for a few minutes, asking what was wrong, but after a while he gave up and went away.

The next morning, Bella told her mom she was sick. She didn't want to go to school, because Edward and Angela would be there.

She got several messages from Edward. "You okay? Can we talk, please? Love, E."

She hadn't wanted to reply, but her mind formed the words without even thinking.

"I thought you had to be with Angela after school. Keep your love for her, bastard!"

Her phone buzzed a couple of times, but she just turned it off. Edward was the last person she wanted to talk to right now. She couldn't believe it. He was cheating on her. With Angela! Of all people, he chose her best friend.

Bella stayed in bed the whole day, refusing to come out for dinner, and she didn't go out with her friends like she normally did on Friday night.

Sunday wasn't any different. Bella stayed in bed, feeling miserable and betrayed, but the first time since she'd found out about Edward and Angela, she was able to eat a bit. Renee had figured out things were rough between her daughter and Edward but was sweet enough not to ask for details.

During Sunday afternoon, Renee came in for another check-up.

"Honey, Edward and Angela are here. He wants to see you. Can you come down?" She sat beside her daughter, gently caressing her back.

"Tell him I don't want to see him," Bella mumbled in her pillow, throwing a blanket over her head.

"Are you sure?" Renee persisted, gently taking away the blanket.

"Yes, I'm sure. I don't need people like them in my life."

"Maybe you should come downstairs, honey. You don't want to miss this."

That spiked Bella's curiosity, just like Renee knew it would. With a heavy head, Bella crawled out of bed and stumbled down the stairs. Edward was standing in the doorway, looking extremely awkward. Bella looked at him for one second and decided it wasn't worth the pain. Before she could turn around, he called her name.

She looked back, and Angela stepped out behind Edward with the cutest little bulldog in her arms. She put it carefully on the floor and the little puppy stumbled toward Bella. It had a blue ribbon around its white furry neck.

Bella almost choked as tears fell on her cheeks. "What is this?"

"I'm sorry I hurt you," Edward said, love radiating through his eyes. "Angela and I have been planning this for a while now, and you know how bad we are at keeping secrets from you."

The puppy finally made it toward Bella and it pushed its little, wet snout against her toe. Bella crouched down and picked it up. Her heart had already taken this little one in.

"She's gorgeous." It squeaked a little, but then found a way to lay comfortable in Bella's arms.

"She is yours." Edward smiled lovingly at her.

"We knew how much you missed Cookie, and you weren't the same after she passed away. We just…we don't want to replace her, but we wanted to do something nice for you," Angela said sincerely. "You have to know, Bella, that I would never do something to hurt you. Neither would Edward. I'd never ever try to take him from you."

Bella saw how quick she had been to making assumptions and wanted to kick herself for being so incredibly judgmental. She was wrong.

Bella ran toward her friends. She took them in an awkward, one-armed hug, earning chuckles from the both of them.

"I'm so sorry I didn't trust you," she whispered, tears falling on her cheeks. "Thank you so much, both of you."

She felt the puppy lick her arm, and she knew everything would be all right again.


	7. For bitter or worse

**-:- 7 -:-**

**Betas**: shinrai and Fmfg

**Summary **(made by Ele05gs): What's worse than going to a wedding full of people you don't know? Rose can think of a few things-going without a date or going with your dad! But maybe not everything is lost, because as we all know, weddings tend to have surprises.

**-:- For bitter or worse -:-**

Rosalie looked at her reflection in the mirror one more time and then sighed deeply. Why did she have to go to this wedding? Her dad's colleagues weren't exactly on her interesting people list. She could already imagine how it was going to be: hours and hours of sitting at the table and listening to old people complaining about the food.

"Ugh!" she growled as she angrily kicked off her high heels. Those bitches were killing her feet already. Though, she wasn't planning on saying that out loud since she practically convinced her mom to spend her entire allowance on them. How could she have known those heels would practically cut off the blood circulation toward her toes? These shoes were perfect for the night blue dress she was wearing.

"I guess beauty comes with a little pain," she mumbled to herself. Rosalie let herself fall on her bed, trying to come up with an idea to get out of this. Maybe she could fake the flu or break a leg or …

"Rosalie, are you coming?" her dad yelled.

Rose shot up straight, and looked around the room.

"Damn it," she cursed. She'd fallen asleep. Quickly, she stood up and looked at herself in the mirror to see the damage. There were a few wrinkles in the dress, but it was still presentable, even her hair wasn't that bad.

"Rose!"

"I'm coming!" she yelled, while quickly putting on her heels.

"Rosalie!"

"All right, all right!" she said, irritated, as she came down the stairs. "You don't have to shout!"

"Ah, look at my gorgeous daughter," her father said, less loud and more calm. "You look absolutely wonderful." He took her hand and guided her to the car that was waiting outside.

"Thanks, daddy." Her father was looking proudly at her and Rose felt herself blush.

"Your mom would have been proud." They both looked away, both wishing she could have been here.

"I know you weren't looking forward to this, Rosie, but maybe it won't be that bad." He helped her inside the car and that was the end of the conversation.

"Yeah, right," Rose thought. "As if I'm going to dance with old people."

For the second time that day, as the car took off, she wished she'd faked the flu.

-:-

"Please," Rose begged, out of breath. "Let me sit for just a few minutes. I can't take it anymore."

Rose smiled while looking up at Emmett. She'd been on the dance floor for over an hour and basically had the greatest time of her life. The reason for her mood change was Emmett, the handsome son of her dad's boss. Rose enjoyed every second with him and wondered why her dad had never mentioned Emmett before. To think that she hadn't wanted to come in the first place. She would have missed out on this.

Though, her shoes were literally killing her feet right now. She could barely walk another step without a grimace of pain on her face.

"Sorry, princess," Emmett joked. "You're really suffering, aren't you?"

Rose nodded, smiling a little.

"Okay then, take them off!" demanded Emmett.

"What?"

"Those things are torturing you, so take them off." He was grinning wickedly, while Rose was looking at him with wide eyes. "Don't take it the wrong way, I love the shoes, but I bet you look every bit as gorgeous without them."

If Rose hadn't been blushing before, she definitely was now.

"Wait, I got it," Emmett said loudly and pulled her up by both hands. She blindly followed him to wherever he was going. Half a minute later, they were sitting at the playground next to the building. Rose placed herself on one of the double swings, while Emmett leaned against the pole.

"Were you looking forward to coming to this as much as I was?" he asked, with a devilish grin on his lips. Rose grinned.

"Honestly? I was thinking about faking the flu," she joked.

"No way!" he exclaimed loudly. "I put a cup of hot chocolate against my face to convince my mom that I had a fever!" He stared into Rose's eyes for a tad bit too long. Rosalie was the first to look away.

"I mean look at me." He gestured at himself. "I'm like an oaf in a monkey suit. Very flattering." He flashed a dimpled smile and Rose laughed out loud.

"Too bad your flu plan didn't work out," she said lightly after a while. "Otherwise, you could have given a big party for all your friends!"

"Yeah, sure," he grunted. "Some movies, popcorn, dancing till the middle of the night, being with the people you like, sounds fine to me."

While he said those words, he crouched down before her. Carefully, he took Rose's leg and pulled it up so that he could remove those killer heels.

"A bit like tonight, then." He smiled at her and Rose nodded. It really did feel like she'd known Emmett for a long time and then to think that she didn't even want to come a few hours earlier. She made a mental note to thank her dad for forcing her to come with him.

Emmett was like her prince charming, coming to her rescue. Or well, at least to the rescue of her feet. She grinned to herself. The wind blew heavily and her golden blond hair was swept across her face. She heard Emmett smirk.

"Come here," he said and he pushed himself to the side as much as possible so that he could sit next to her on the little swing. His arms loosely embraced her lower back, and she felt him leaning his head on top of hers.

"I'm glad I came," he murmured.

"Me too," Rose replied. She hadn't wanted to come, but sometimes, things don't turn out the way you thought they would. An unexpected surprise indeed.


	8. Let it snow

**-:- 8 -:-**

**Betas:** ChocolateMango and TwilightLuver429

**Summary**: When the first snowflakes of the year grace the pavement with their presence, will love grow to keep them warm?

**-:- Let it snow -:-**

Finally, after a few weeks of having to endure the ice cold wind with no reward, the first snow of the year had decided to blow through Forks.

"Great," Alice mumbled, while looking outside the window during fourth period. The trees if the forest were bending dangerously low by the wind—too low for her liking. With her luck, she'd be crushed under one of them on the way home.

The weather would definitely ruin her hair, which she had perfected this morning after getting up an hour early. Everything had to be perfect according to Rosalie: hair, makeup, clothes. It just had to be.

Rosalie, Alice's best friend, was pretty much the most beautiful girl in the entire school, and she demanded that her _entourage_, as she called it, looked impeccable every day.

But, of course, there was another reason as well: Jasper.

Alice had been in love with Jasper for as long as she could remember. He was a senior, and pretty much every girl in the school wanted to drown in his gorgeous dark eyes, mess up his honey blond curls and be held by his strong arms.

Jasper Hale was a total catch, and he knew it.

Unfortunately for Alice, she was only a sophomore, and a senior like Jasper wouldn't look twice in her direction. Why would he? There were a lot of senior girls who were prettier than her.

"Alice, are you coming to the park or what?" Rosalie whined softly beside her, effectively ending her train of thought. "Your make up is waterproof as always so the snow won't turn you into a monster." She grinned at her comment, while Alice shoved against her shoulder. "Besides, I just bought new snow boots and these blue gloves are to die for. I have to show them off!"

Alice smiled as Rosalie wiggled her hands in front of her. She loved it when her friend was overreacting like that. She knew Rosalie was the living version of Barbie, but she was grateful that Rose didn't have the personality of a plastic doll when she was around her. Add huge, blue doe eyes to her pleading, and Alice couldn't help but give in.

"Fine, I'm coming," she said, a bit annoyed. "What do you want me to do there anyway? Fall on my face again?"

But, as soon as they reached the edge of the park, all the annoyance she had toward her best friend vanished. Alice suddenly realized this was the _perfect_ spot to spend their lunch break. Everyone, including Jasper, was present.

"Rose, did I ever tell you how brilliant you are?"

"A couple of times." Rose grinned. "But I'm not stoppingyou from saying it again."

"Oh, this is perfect. Jasper has to notice me when I throw a snowball in his face." Alice laughed evilly and turned around to gather some snow.

"You really think that's the best idea?" Rose asked, but the only thing she got from Alice was an incredibly loud curse.

"What the hell?" Alice growled.

"Who did this?" She wiped away the snow that was now stuck to her butt, freezing her jeans and causing goose bumps and shivers to run over her body. She angrily turned around, looking for the traitor. She didn't see who did it, but Jasper's group was laughing too loudly to go unnoticed. The guys pointing in her direction was enough of a clue as to who had done it.

"Oh, Alice," Rose hiccupped, slapping her knee in laughter. "He definitely noticed you."

"Rose, this is only the beginning." Alice smiled knowingly in Jasper's direction.

"Of what?"

"War."

-:-

Alice hadn't slept well. She had been creating one plan after the other, causing her to lay awake most of the night. The plan was easy of course—make a snowball and make sure it hit its target. The target, in this case, was Jasper's face.

The question here was _how_?

Alice was no throwing talent; her PE teacher would gladly confirm that in an instant. She couldn't aim, and the large distance would form a potential problem as well.

"Rose, what should I do?" Alice whispered during the last minutes before lunch.

"It's easy, isn't it? Just make sure you have enough snowballs to throw. More balls, more chances." She grinned at her dirty insinuation. Alice ignored the underlying tone and accepted the challenge. As soon as the bell rang, both girls ran toward the park and started to make their ammunition.

By the time Jasper and his crew arrived, they had enough to last a while. Jasper caught her eye and waved, a devilish grin on his face.

"Oh, it's on," Alice mumbled. "Attack!"

Rose and Alice both started to throw their snowballs, and a couple of other friends joined as well. Soon enough, the park was soon divided into two teams. Loud screaming and laughter were mixed together.

"Why is it so easy for them to hit us?" Alice asked, while wiping away some snow of her shoulder since she got hit, _again_. Though, not one of her snowballs had hit her desired target yet.

"Duck!" Rose suddenly yelled, but Alice was so startled at her friend's outburst that she lost her balance and fell backwards. Her head hit the frozen, snow-covered ground pretty hard. Black spots appeared in her sight. _That would definitely hurt tomorrow. _

She heard people laughing.

_Great_, she thought. _Now I can die of shame too._

"Hey, you okay?" A voice came from beside her. After a minute or so, she finally focused and Jasper came into view. "I didn't mean to hit you. Well, _again_."

"I-I mean…" she mumbled.

"Here, let me help you." Jasper held out his hand for her to take. "We'll get a hot chocolate or something to warm you up again."

He pulled her up, but Alice was too dazzled to say anything else. Rose was grinning madly behind Jasper's back while doing some crazy, happy dance.

"I'm Jasper by the way," he added.

"Alice."

"Nice to meet you, Alice." His smile was even more gorgeous up close.

Alice started to laugh at the ridiculous situation she was in with Jasper, she almost lost her balance again.

However, this time, she had two strong arms holding her up. Finally.


	9. Her guy next door

**-:- 9 -:-**

**Betas: **ZanessaGaily and GetDrunkOnVictory

**Summary: **For the past three years, Angela took the same bus to school as Ben. They were once really close, best friends, but now? They barely speak to one another. Angela, however, has had a hard time dealing with her feelings. Can one little encounter change anything?

**-:- Her guy next door -:-**

Everyday, Angela had to endure the stinking bus to school for about half an hour. She occupied herself with studying, listening to music and stealing glances at that one guy who had taken up every rational thought in her mind: Ben. He was her boy next door, they grew up together, where you saw one, the other wasn't far behind. But then Ben's parents decided to send him to an all boys school. Ben started dating some girl named Jessica, and the beautiful friendship that once was, vanished.

Angela felt the sting in her heart every time she looked at him. She had always sort of liked him, but seeing him every day didn't make it easier to forget him. Or at least try to forget him. For the past few weeks, after hearing that Ben and Jessica broke up, she had been thinking about some sort of plan to catch his attention. She didn't dare just walk up to him and start talking. She could only imagine the awkward silence that would follow.

Another school day passed with Angela daydreaming about Ben, yet still no plan by the time she got home She let herself fall onto her bed.

"What should I do?" she mumbled to her blue monkey, a sixth birthday present from Ben that she still kept close. She couldn't just go over there and ring the doorbell like she used to. Angela thought about the time when they were best friends, how they would have sleepovers, how they shared their first kiss because they each wanted to have it out of the way, how they went running in the forest behind their houses, how they used to communicate with papers before their windows...all of that was gone. Angela looked out of the window, but instead of seeing a message, she was met with closed curtains.

The next day was one of the warmest they had had this year and Angela was sweating her ass off waiting for the bus to come. When it finally arrived, the doors opened and her ears almost popped with the loudest cackles ever. The bus was filled with screaming toddlers.

"Fantastic," she grumbled as she tried to make her way to the empty seat at the back, trying not to fall over dozens of backpacks and toys. Angela felt bad for the young teacher, who was desperately trying to control her zoo of wild animals.

Angela sat herself at the empty seat and took out one of her books to study. She needed to ace her English test.

"Would you mind?" someone asked beside her.

Startled, she looked up.

_Ben was asking to sit next to her? _

"Sure." She smiled, a bit reluctant. She turned her head and looked out of the window. She could still see his reflection, though. It had been three years since she had been this close to him.

"I feel like a sardine in a box." She heard him chuckle beside her and she had to muffle a laugh as well.

"Well, it's definitely something else," she added and Ben nodded.

"How are you?" he asked after a few minutes.

"Oh, I'm fine," she said hastily. _Crap this was awkward_. "Long time no see?"

Ben looked embarrassed and fumbled with the zipper of his bag.

"I know," he replied after a while, "It's not like it used to be, is it? I miss it sometimes. I was thinking about those little papers the other day. Crazy, wasn't it?"

Angela had a hard time ignoring the little jumps her heart was making. He still thought about her? And just like that, they started talking again as if nothing ever happened.

For the rest of the day, Angela had a hard time concentrating. Her mind constantly flew back to her conversation with Ben. He had told her he was going to Mike's party tonight. Maybe she could go too...

"Bella!" she yelled when she saw her best friend in the hallway.

"What's up?" Bella's brown waves flew in her face when she turned around.

"You up for a party tonight?" Angela asked with a big smile on her face.

"Well party-pooper, where is this coming from?" Bella replied, her eyebrows raised, but a smile was playing on her lips. Angela couldn't blame her. Bella had been begging her to go to parties since...well, ever. She always said no.

"A certain someone might be going to Mike's and I was thinking about checking it out."

Angela covered her ears when Bella started to scream. "No way! He finally talked to you again? Thank the Lord! I have been waiting for this day for the past three years." She was almost jumping around. She definitely hung out too much with Alice these days.

"Well, yes, I mean–"

"This is perfect!" Bella hugged her friend sideways. "I'll come over at eight and we'll get ready. Ben won't know what hit him once he sees you."

In the evening, Angela took a bath and relaxed before Bella came over. She wanted to look her absolute best tonight. When she finally opened her closest, she sighed: what to wear?

A black skirt, a red strapless dress, a blue sweater...oh, this was going to be hard, but Ben's favourite colour was red. She threw the red dress on and looked at herself in the mirror. Yes, this would work just fine.

Her eyes fell on the clock: 8:30pm. Where was Bella?

She was about to call when her friend's name appeared on her screen.

Not a minute later, Angela sat down on her bed, defeated, pouting and sad. Bella was sick. The flu had been going around, but did it really have to pick today of all days to knock out her best friend?

Angela was upset; her entire plan was falling apart. She angrily threw her phone on her bed and looked out her window. The light in Ben's room caught her attention and she walked toward the window sill.

Ben was casually sitting on his, a smug grin on his face when he saw Angela. He held up his notebook.

_You going to the party? _

Angela smiled, remembering the time when they did this on a daily basis. She grabbed the first paper she could find and wrote down: _nope, Bella bailed on me. _

Ben jumped off his window sill and disappeared into his room. Before Angela could see what he was doing, her phone went off.

"I'm not going either," Ben said as soon as she picked up. "I've been thinking about our conversation earlier, and I was wondering if you would want to come over instead?"

Angela couldn't believe what she heard and she bit her lip to keep herself from squealing. That tingly feeling in her stomach didn't make it any better either.

"Be right there," she managed to get out before she did a little happy dance in her room. A minute later, she crossed the garden and saw that Ben was already waiting for her on his porch.

"Wow," he said breathlessly. Angela hadn't taken off the red dress. She smiled, and noticed that Ben was looking awfully nervous. Her heart was pumping hard.

"Angie, I-" he started. He took a deep breath and then said: "Angie, I like you. I have for a long time and that thing with Jessica...I can't get you out of my head."

"Excuse me?" She gasped, not believing what she just heard.

"I know it is sudden." He held up his hands. "But I've always liked you and I never wanted to say anything. I was too afraid it would ruin our friendship. Then I went to another school and we grew apart and I never had the guts to talk to you until this morning. Thanks to those little toddlers." He smiled sheepishly, while Angela was still watching him, at loss for words herself. Then, Ben took something out of his pocket.

"I don't want to lose you again, Angie, so that's why I would like to ask you something." He seemed shy when he folded out the paper.

It read: _Do you want to go out with me? _

Angela smiled brightly, threw her arms around her guy next door, and whispered a quiet yes into his ear.


	10. Liar Liar

**-:- 10 -:-**

**Betas: **Michelle and Nyx'sReincarnation

**Summary: **A lie may take care of the present, but it has no future…Jacob will soon find out how every action has a reaction.

**-:- Liar Liar -:-**

Bella was done. She'd had enough. Angered, she threw her phone back onto her bed. It bounced and fell off. She flinched slightly at the loud thud. She had never been so mad at Jacob, her boyfriend. Or better: her soon-to-be-dumped boyfriend. This was the millionth lie in a few weeks' time, all the lies and the secrecy made Bella's blood boil. Jacob was cheating on her. Why didn't he just say so? Didn't he care enough about her to be honest? Didn't she deserve the truth?

A few minutes ago, Bella had called Jacob but Billy, his dad, had picked up the phone instead. When Bella asked if Jake was there, Billy turned her down, saying Jake needed _to take care of some stuff. _Yeah right.

Feeling more betrayed by the second and not liking her paranoiac thoughts, she called Jacob's mobile. After the second ring, he picked up.

"Hey Babe!" Bella ignored the warm feeling she got whenever she heard his voice.

"Hi," she said meekly. "Where are you?"

"Home?" he said very quickly and this time, Bella couldn't ignore the pang of pain that dropped from her heart and landed in her stomach. Lying, _again_.

This was by no means the first time. Last week, he had told her he had football practice with Seth, while Bella was with Seth at that very moment.

This had been the last drop to the imaginary bucket. She was done. She deserved better than this. A few weeks ago, she had been the happiest girl on the planet with a guy like Jake on her arm, but she refused to take this any longer. Even though she really didn't want to lose Jake, sharing him with someone else was the last thing on her mind! He was either going to be hers completely or not at all.

An hour later, she still hadn't calmed down. Rage was running through her veins. She picked up her phone from the ground and dialed Seth's number. Normally she would call Alice, her best friend, but she would shush her and say it is probably nothing to worry about. Bella had been shushed for far too long now: she was taking matters into her own hands.

She wanted to give Seth a heads-up, saying she was going to dump Jacob so that he could comfort his sorry ass later tonight. _If that's even necessary_, Bella thought viciously. _He will probably run straight into the arms of the other one. _

The real reason for calling Seth was that Bella hoped he could talk some sense into Jacob. Or else tell her who the other girl was. She wanted to know the name of the bitch she was imagining right now. Her fingers curled into an angry fist.

"This is Seth." She finally heard after she almost let the phone ring for two whole minutes.

"Seth? It's Bella." _Oh, good one. Caller ID, you moron, he knows it's you. _"Just calling to say I'm dumping Jacob tonight. I am so sick of his lies, Seth. You know as well as I do that he has been lying to me over and over again. He has been acting really strange lately, so either you are going to tell me what's going on or you are going to give me the name of the girl he has been seeing behind my back!?" Bella was breathing loudly. She hadn't wanted to throw it all out like that, but sometimes she got the rare case of word vomit. She was still angry, but that feeling was gently being replaced by hurt and betrayal.

A minute passed between them in silence.

"Seth?" she finally asked.

"Still here," he said quickly. "I'm just a bit shocked, Bella. I thought things were going great with you and Jake? I mean, wouldn't you want to think about it a bit more before you make a rash decision?"

That was clearly not what she wanted to hear. "I have been thinking about it, Seth, for a while now and I don't want to put up with lying, sneaking bastards. I went down that road before with Edward and I'm not doing it again," she snapped.

"Oh- Okay. Ill- I'll talk to Jake." He sounded nervous, not like the happy, confident Seth he normally was.

"Thanks," Bella said shortly and hung up. Apparently, she couldn't count on Seth, either. He was playing it down, like this was no big deal, though he had sat next to Bella, listening in on Jacob convincing her that he really was with Seth.

Bella remembered the pain in his eyes at his friend's betrayal. It probably matched hers right now.

The picture on her nightstand caught her attention. It was taken a few weeks ago during a hot summer day at the beach in La Push. Jake's dark brown eyes were looking right at her. His long, glossy black hair was pulled back in a ponytail. There was a hint of childish roundness to his chin as he planted a kiss on her cheek. Bella was smiling brightly at the camera, with her arms around his neck. Both of them were kissed by the sun. The waves and the sand in the background…_That had been a fantastic day, _Bella thought miserably. She looked away. The boy in the picture was no longer hers.

Bella's decision had been made: tonight would be the end of her Jacob chapter.

A few miles from Bella's house, Seth turned toward Jacob, who was sitting next to him, his face resting hopelessly in his hands.

"She wants to break up with you tonight," Seth said lightly, like Jake hadn't just heard every word Bella had said.

"I know," Jake replied.

"She thinks you are cheating on her."

"I know."

Seth couldn't fight his smile anymore. "She is going to be so surprised." He bumped his fist in the air, but Jake wasn't feeling so sure anymore. He had not seen this coming. There was no one else. Hell, he wouldn't do that to Bella. Never. He knew what she had gone through with that bastard of a Cullen.

Jake would not, could not, hurt her like that, ever.

If only Bella had waited one more day to let her stubbornness get the better of her, everything would be fine.

"So what are you going to do?" Seth clapped Jake on the shoulder.

He sighed. "Call her, and ask her out. I need to get her to The Old Diner tonight."

For the last few weeks, Jake had been organizing a surprise party for Bella's birthday next week. Turning eighteen had always been a big deal for her and Jake wanted to make it even bigger. He had made sure every detail was perfect. The right flowers. The right music. The right room. He made sure all of Bella's friends were going to be there. Hell, he even convinced Jessica and Rosalie, Bella's nieces from Phoenix, to come down here and enjoy the party. Jake knew that Bella missed the girls terribly. He had wanted to make it worthy for her. He had purposely chosen to throw the party a week prior to her birthday, because he knew Bella so well. He knew she would try to figure out what he had bought for her or if he had a surprise of any sort.

Jake had been happy that today would be the last day he had to lie to his girl. He was normally always so open with her, never holding back, never keeping secrets. The past few weeks had been harder on him than Bella could ever imagine.

Bella and him? They were solid. If only she had kept her curiosity at bay for one more day…

_Here we go, _Jake thought as he dialed his girlfriend's number.

"Bells?"

"Yes." _Hello Ice Queen. Nice of you to stop by._

"Bells, we need to talk." Jake flinched. That was not what he wanted to say. "Can I pick you up at eight tonight?"

Bella didn't know what to say. _We need to talk_…Really? Her stomach was doing back flips, making her incredibly nauseous. _We need to talk_…that never ends well. Was he going to dump her? No way. This time, she was going check mate.

She breathed lightly through her nose, keeping her cool. "Fine. I'll see you then."

She could hear him smile. "Oh, and Bells? Put something nice on."

Jake hung up before Bella could even answer. Why would she need to put something nice on? She didn't spend too much time thinking about it, though. At least if she looked great, she could dump his ass in style.

Jake arrived at Bella's house at exactly eight on the dot. _He had always been punctual_, she thought, smiling a little. But then when she looked at him, and boy did he clean up nice, she couldn't suppress the anger and the hurt. She got into his car, crossed her arms and remained silent, ignoring him all together.

The butterflies in her stomach were working over hours though, and Bella was starting to doubt herself. Did she really want to throw it all away? No. What if there was another reason for his behavior? Maybe. What if she was jumping to conclusions? All the what ifs…

"You coming?" She suddenly heard next to her. Jake had stopped the car, got out, opened her door and was waiting for her to answer without her even realizing it. Wow, she had been out of it.

"Why are we at The Old Diner?" she asked, confused. The building hadn't been used for years since a couple of break-ins made the owner go bankrupt.

"You'll see," Jake said mysteriously.

"You planning on killing me and burying my body here?" Bella joked a little to ease her nerves.

"No, but I bet you would still look beautiful as a corpse in that gorgeous red dress." Bella punched him lightly. Things were always so easy between them. Breaking up was going to hurt.

Without further hesitation, she put her hand on the door handle and pushed it open. It was completely dark. She suddenly felt two hands on her shoulders and she stiffened.

"Jake, what is th-"

"SURPRISE! HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BELLA!"

The lights went on and Bella blinked rapidly. The entire room had been transformed into a retro club room. There were couches, lights, disco balls. The bar had been cleaned up and everywhere were familiar faces. All her friends, Alice among them, family members, Bella saw Billy as well, smirking at her with Seth on his side. Her heart stopped a second when she saw Jessica and Rosalie.

_Oh, Bella, stupid, stupid, Bella. _If she could punch herself in the face, she would right now.

Instead, she turned around. "You did this?"

"Happy birthday, Bells." He smiled sheepishly. "I wanted to make it special for you and I'm sorry you got caught in the lies. That was not part of the plan."

Bella was dumbstruck. "I wanted to-" she whispered covering her mouth, feeling guilty.

"I know," he cut her off.

Bella didn't even need to ask him if there was someone else. There wasn't. Her judgmental mind had jumped to conclusions. Before the crowd could get to her, she threw her arms around her wonderful boyfriend, pressing a kiss against his dark brown neck.

"I love you," she whispered, while hugging him tighter.

She heard him smirk. "I know."


End file.
